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The Bloggers Lament

Most bloggers write to be appreciated. They don’t blog for fame. They don’t blog for money. They don’t blog to pass the time of day. They blog because they have an irresistible internal energy that is calling them to interact with other humans through the two-way street called written communication.

We live in a world with little appreciation. People spend a lot of their time complaining and criticizing. Bloggers do this too, but many bloggers are trying very diligently to add to the joys of the world – to uplift the reader to a higher consciousness or, at least, to better their day. For that they ask only for a little appreciation and gratitude.

If most bloggers are like me, they are somewhat addicted to the stats page. Where are my readers coming from? What articles do they like? Are they coming back for more? Do they like what I write? Do they appreciate me?

There’s the rub. The bloggers lament. Am I appreciated for what I write. 147 hits today, 213 yesterday. They looked at many of my blogs, but no “likes” and no “comments”. Ah, at last, one comment – this reader is inspired by my latest piece and praises my writing style. Now everything is right with the world. I am inspired to write more.

Dear reader: if you enter a website or blog and read content that someone has taken the trouble to write and make available to you, please honor them. If you like what they write then click the “like” button or leave a comment. If you disagree with what they write, tell them so they can get a different perspective. We are all learning.

I hereby declare this week as Blogger Appreciation Week. Please show your appreciation for your favorite blogger with a “Like”.

“Over a 156 million blogs.” That reminds me of the starfish story. Perhaps you know it. A woman walks down the beach picking up the starfish that have been washed to shore. A passerby asks, “What are you doing?”

“I’m saving the starfish.”

“But look,” says the passerby, “there are hundreds of starfish. It won’t make a difference.”

The woman throws another starfish back into the sea. “It does to this one.”

There are many blogs. Many books. Many songs. Many meals. Many people. I’m never going to meet all of them. But i have met one more today.

Thank you for stopping over at my blog too. And yes, I wish people would leave some mark of their experience.

Amazing world, Blogging. Less than a year ago, I have never read a blog. What a powerful source of communication it is. For me, while I love getting comments to know that I am putting out is what readers need, it is icing on the cake. My real reward is serving my Creator…I write what I receive holding pen in hand, ready to manifest words of inspiration as they are sent. Keep writing John, with or without comments. You may never know how something you write will make a difference in someone’s life. Sending you lots of love and likes. 🙂 hugs, pat

Synchronicity–always intriguing! It is my challenge to write without looking for the strokes, to know in my heart that my words have truth and value for me. This is a challenge for me to do, and one that I just took on: to validate my own work myself for myself, and to let that be enough.

Thanks! I will return the favor. I am just reflecting–what I truly love about blog comments is not the praise, but the conversation. The back and forth of ideas, the connection–is that what we’re really looking for when we wait for those responses?

Absolutely. It’s not praise. We just want to communicate with people. Intelligent communication that is. I have very strong and opinionated ideas about a lot of things, but I’m always open to learning and growing if someone can help me with that. That’s why I like to see comments. Praise is nice to but you don’t really learn a lot from that.

Thank you for sharing this, John. I always appreciate the blogs I visit. Even if I don’t completely understand where the blogger is coming from, I am amazed about the inspiration or creativity that spurred the blogger to choose a specific topic, words, form, style, photo etc. I do admit, I must become more diligent about pushing the “like” button … I don’t do that frequently enough.

Thanks Becca. Most of the blogs I visit, I make some type of comment even if it is “Thanks, I really appreciate what you wrote”. Sometimes if I have an opinion on what the writer has said I will write really a lot. Also, if I make a really long comment, it will often end up in my own blog as a post.

Yes, I completely agree with you. For me, blogging is a way to share the things I love with others, and I know that this is the case for the majority of other bloggers out there. I always leave a comment or a ‘like’ whenever I read a post that touches me. I hope that we can all do the same for each other. Thank you for reminding us of the importance of doing this.